Rule One: Don't Let Them See The Pain
by KeepYourEyesWideOpen
Summary: Some things are just too difficult to forget. Those faces that appear in your mind every time you close your eyes. Liam was a long time ago, and people think Callie's OK now, but she's not OK, she's just programmed so others don't see her fear. Implied Brallie, but not the main focus.
1. Chapter 1

**Summary: some things are just too difficult to forget. Those faces that appear in your mind every time you close your eyes. Liam was a long time ago, and people think Callie's OK now, but she's not OK, she's just programmed so others don't see her fear. Implied Brallie, but not the main focus.**

**Ok so this is set after episode 7, except Callie never told Stef and Lena about Liam, so Brandon's the only one who knows. This is a short chapter, just to introduce the story. The others will be longer, with things actually happening.**

**And lastly, I love reviews and hearing what others think about my work, constructive criticism welcome, but no flames please.**

Callie Jacobs spent every second of her life in survival mode. She was programmed to defend herself, and more importantly her little brother. She always kept her emotions locked away in a dark corner of her mind. Rule one of survival: don't let them see the pain.

Of course she had let her guard down a few times. She wasn't a superhuman who was incapable of crying, but when she did need to let her tears fall, she made sure she was locked away, where no one would ever find out. Until now. Because she's revealed too much about herself and her past to Brandon, and she hates herself for it. She hates the sympathy in his eyes every time he looks her way.

Brandon observed Callie from where he was sat at the kitchen table. He couldn't get his head around what she had told him the earlier that day. She was such a strong person, standing tall against the war that had been her life. He had found it so strange seeing her in a moment of weakness. He watched her go about her normal daily routine. It was although this afternoon never happened. He couldn't imagine what Callie had been through with Liam. He had no idea about her other foster homes either. All he knew was that Callie's past was a dark place and something he wouldn't even wish on his worst enemy.

But Liam had been a couple of years ago. Surely that would have been enough time to accept what had happened and move on, right?

Brandon was right, it had been enough time for Callie to have finally let it go, and get settled in to life with The Fosters. She was just starting to become a regular teenager.

Until Liam had turned up again a couple of days ago. And now the terror was back, and worse than ever. Every time she took her mind off whatever it was she was doing, even for a second, Liam's face would appear in her mind and fear would run through her like a wild animal. Liam knew where Callie lived. And Callie knew what Liam was capable of.

And she was more scared now than she had ever been.

**So that's chapter 1. I hope you like it and review, and I promise the next chapter will be better and longer.**

**xx**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey guys, another chapter in a day, but I thought it was best to get it up when I had inspiration. I'm not 100% happy with this, I feel like its missing something, but that might just be because there's more dialogue, and I'm never great at writing dialogue. **

**So I've had a bunch of follows and favourites, so I'm really grateful for that, but some reviews on this chapter would be nice, as I love hearing what people think about my work **

Callie awoke from a nightmare for the third time that night. She sat up and tried to catch her breath, simultaneously rubbing at the tears that had formed in her eyes.

Mariana stirred across the room, but thankfully did not wake.

Liam's face was burning itself into Callie's mind. It was so hard to sleep when she could feel his invisible presence in the room, as if he were stood over her bed.

The red LED numbers on the clock told her that it was 5:30. She didn't need to get up as it was a Sunday, but it didn't look as if she were getting any more sleep.

She got up and slowly crept along the landing. It was as if all those normal house sounds that people don't even notice had suddenly become much louder.

She hated being afraid all the time.

And she hated not knowing. Liam could leave her alone for good or he could turn up again at any time.

On her way into the kitchen she almost collided with her little brother.

"Hey buddy you're up early, everything OK?" she asked.

"Yeah, I was just getting some water" he responded.

"Well you can get me some while you're by the sink"

Callie made her way to sit down on the stool. Jude joined her. "Why are you up?" he asked.

"Oh, I just had a bad dream. It's nothing to worry about" Callie added on that last bit quickly.

Jude scrutinized his sister's face. He knew her well enough to be able to read it well. "About Liam" he asked, cautiously.

"What? Why do you think that?" Callie responded, a little too quickly.

"You have your Liam face on" Jude responded, matter of factly.

Callie raised an eyebrow slightly. So she has a face for when she's thinking about Liam. Why was this kid so observant?

"Why are you worrying about him anyway? You haven't seen him in two years"

Callie just nodded, swallowing. She hated lying to him, but she couldn't bring herself to tell her little brother that she had in fact seen Liam a few days ago, and that he also knew where they were staying.

Jude looked Callie in the eyes, suddenly worried. "He's not going to hurt you again is he?"

Callie gave him what she hoped was a reassuring smile. "I'm sure he won't"

After Jude had gone back to his room, Callie was stood in the hallway, when she saw from the crack under the door that Brandon had his light on. Everyone seemed to be up early today. She wondered what was going on with Brandon. He'd been watching her intently all evening after everything she'd told him the day before.

Curiosity got the better of her, and she pushed open his bedroom door. He didn't immediately notice as he had his headphones in, engrossed in playing his keyboard. When he noticed Callie he took them off and gestured that she could come in. "What's wrong?" he asked her.

"Why do you think something's wrong, just because I'm up early?" she asked him, sitting down at his desk.

"Well most teenagers aren't up at six o'clock on a Sunday"

"You're up at six o'clock on a Sunday" she pointed out.

"Yeah well I've got things on my mind"

"You're not worrying about me and Liam are you?" Callie asked. Now she'd said it, she wasn't sure what she wanted the answer to be.

"No. I mean it's not that I'm not worried, but I'm, you know not worried about it" Brandon mentally cursed himself. He was an appalling liar. The truth was he was completely worried about Callie. Because since Liam had returned she was nothing like the girl he had previously gotten to know. She was tiptoeing round the house, trying hard to blend into the background. And since yesterday, when she had told him about all those horrible things Liam had done to her, Brandon just wanted to make sure he would never hurt her again.

He just had no idea how he was going to do that.

XXX

A chaotic, but normal breakfast scene was going on in the Foster's kitchen. Lena was trying to organise all of the many teenagers, none of whom were really paying attention.

"Right Jesus and Mariana, you two are cleaning up after breakfast, Brandon you have to get to your piano lesson in half an hour, and Callie and Jude, it's you turn to run errands with me, we leave in an hour"

Suddenly the thought of leaving the safety of the house made Callie's chest get tight. She seemed to show this in her face because suddenly Lena was asking her if she was OK. Callie considered saying she was sick and staying home, but she didn't want the fuss that Lena and Stef would undoubtedly make. Plus she didn't want to make Brandon or Jude worry about her even more.

She plastered on a smile "I'm fine" she said quickly, I'm gonna grab a shower"

Callie got some clean clothes from the drawer in the room she shared with Mariana. She made her way into the bathroom and locked the door behind her just as normal. As she was undressing she kept looking at the lock on the door. She felt uneasy. Like the bathroom had suddenly shrunk and she may not be able to get out. Heck just having the door closed was bad enough. She felt so anxious, like she needed to get out of the bathroom as quickly as possible. Breathing was becoming harder to do.

Callie took the fastest shower imaginable and then just lay on her bed, with the door wide open, trying to catch her breath again.

She felt OK again by the time Jude came in to tell her they were leaving, however sitting in the car brought on that uneasy feeling again. She'd been in cars hundreds of times before, so why was it that this one suddenly felt much smaller.

Callie could feel her palms getting sweaty and her breathing getting worse. She couldn't take anymore. "Can you pull over?" she asked Lena, as calmly as she could.

One look at the girl told Lena she should do as she was asked. She watched from the window as Callie stood by the side of the road, bent over, desperately trying to catch her breath. She and Jude both got out of the car and went to join the young girl.

"What was that about honey?" asked Lena.

Callie didn't know what was going on with her body at that moment. She honestly just wanted to go back to bed and catch up on all the sleep she'd missed last night. But she couldn't do that, she didn't want Lena to get suspicious.

"I'm fine, I might just be a bit travel sick or something, can I walk and meet you at the shops? Its only ten minutes"

Lena nodded. "OK sweetie, we'll see you there" something was definitely wrong, but Callie was never good under pressure, so she decided to leave it for now and see how she was later. Jude gave his sister a hug and then got back inside the car.

As Callie began her walk to the shops, she noticed she didn't really feel any calmer. She kept crossing the road to avoid people who reminded her too much of Liam. She kept stopping and glancing behind her in case he was following her.

She willed herself to think of something else, but she just couldn't get him out of her mind.

XXX

Jude was worried. Really worried. He watched his sister in the shops, watched how she tried too hard not to draw attention to herself, how she watched everyone carefully. He really wished he could help her; he just wanted his sister back.

Callie had always been the one who looked after him. If he was hurt she would bandage his wounds and make it better. It was his turn now, but for some reason Callie's pain wasn't coming from wounds that could be fixed so easily.

Was it Liam who was doing this to her? Why? She hadn't seen him in years. Had she?

He kept replaying their conversation from this morning over in his head.

"_He's not going to hurt you again is he?"_

"_I'm sure he won't"_

I'm sure didn't mean he definitely wouldn't.

XXX

Stef and Lena had asked Callie what had been going on that day, and Callie had shrugged off the question and told them she was fine. She could tell they didn't believe her but they had left it at that.

There was a huge part of Callie that wanted to tell them about Liam, about what he'd done, why she was so afraid.

But she couldn't.

Part of it was for the same reasons she had told Brandon earlier, about getting put on the high risk register. But deep down she knew Stef could stop that from happening. It was because every time she opened her mouth to say something Liam's icy voice would appear in her head _"if you tell anyone, anyone about what we've been doing, I will hurt you, but that won't be all, because I'll hurt Jude too_

And if there was one person in the world who Callie couldn't see get hurt, it was Jude. He had been her only family for so long, the only one who loved her. All the change she had been through in her life, all the new houses and new schools, he had been the one thing that had stayed the same, that had always been there.

She had already put him in danger by telling Brandon and the one thing that kept Callie awake that night more than the thought of Liam hurting her, was the thought of him hurting her brother.

**Well there we go, chapter 2. It was quite long but I couldn't find a suitable cut off point. Anyway reviews would be amazing **


	3. Chapter 3

**I don't really like this chapter, but I wanted to update because I haven't for a while. I found it really hard to write for some reason…**

**Thanks for the reviews. TheTBone- I agree, I want Callie to talk to Stef and Lena too, it's not gonna happen any time soon though…I'm one of those writers who likes to put the audience through a lot **

White flashes

Liam's face was close too close to her own.

Another flash

He was on top of her. She was screaming out. Screams no one would ever hear.

Callie woke up from another nightmare. They had been plaguing her now for two nights. She was covered in cold sweat. She sat up, trying hard to get her breathing back to normal.

What the hell was wrong with her? She hadn't even been this bad two years ago when Liam had actually been abusing her. But now she was scared and jumpy all the time. She never felt safe, even though she knew the Fosters were the safest family she and Jude had ever been placed with. It was like there was always something dangerous hovering over her shoulder, but the second she turned around, it was gone.

Callie thought of Liam again, the way his skin seemed to burn hers with every touch. As she remembered, her stomach clenched and churned painfully. She got out of bed quickly and ran to the bathroom, before violently throwing up everything she had eaten that day.

She leaned against the bathroom tiles, and closed her eyes against the tears that were trying so hard to break free. She didn't know what was wrong. All she knew was that there was something really wrong with her, and she couldn't tell Lena and Stef. They'd think she was crazy, and then Liam would find out and then…No she didn't want to think about that.

Callie felt more alone than ever.

She sighed and opened her eyes again, only to find that she wasn't alone. Mariana was stood in her doorway, her arms folded and a confused look on her face.

"What?" asked Callie, more harshly than she had intended.

"Well, what was all that about for a start?" Mariana retorted.

"It's nothing, I probably just ate something"

"Right…" Mariana raised her eyebrow, turning to leave.

XXX

Normal dinner conversation was taking place at the table that evening. Or at least that's what Callie assumed as she wasn't really paying attention. Her mind was always elsewhere these days. She didn't think she'd taken in a word anyone had said to her all day.

She was concentrating on not thinking about Liam, only she was trying so hard she ended up thinking about him more. And every time she thought about him her stomach would tense up, her breathing would become laboured and her palms would get sweaty. And this was happening right now.

Someone was asking her if she was OK, but she couldn't catch her breath to answer. She just nodded and helped herself to more food to try and distract everyone from the problem at hand. It didn't work. Stef got up and stood directly in front of her.

"Callie, if there's something wrong, we want to help you" Stef told her, gently.

"NO!" everyone was taken aback by the sudden burst of noise coming from Callie's mouth.

Callie looked around at the faces in front of her. They all blurred into a mess of colours, the tears obscuring her vision. Callie took a deep breath, trying to keep her voice steady. "I'm going out" and with that she left. She could vaguely hear Stef and Lena asking her where she was going and when she'd be back, but she just shook their voices off and carried on out of the door.

XXX

Brandon paces the hallway outside his moms closed bedroom door. He knew Callie may never speak to him again if he told his moms about Liam. Then again they would be able to help. Having Callie hate him seemed like a small price to pay if it meant she would be safe.

So why was he finding it so hard to open the door and say something?

"B, is that you?" he heard his mom call out.

He took a deep breath and opened the door.

"I know what's going on with Callie" he said as quickly as he could, before he backed out.

Well now he had their full attention. "What do you mean?" asked Stef.

Brandon opened his mouth to speak, when an image of Callie flashed through his mind. In that moment when she had opened up and told him about Liam, she had trusted him. This wasn't his secret to tell.

He sighed. "I don't know if I should tell you"

"Brandon, you're smart, you can figure it out. If you think it's important or if Callie is in any kind of danger, then you know you should tell us"

"It's someone from her past. He's turned up again"

"Do you know any more?" asked Lena.

Brandon didn't want to lie, but he just shook his head. Maybe he would tell them later, if Callie didn't seem any better.

"OK" said Stef, sighing. "We'll talk to her when she gets back"

Brandon nodded, suddenly remembering he had plans for the night "hey, is it OK if I go see Aiden?"

Stef nodded "sure, but be back for curfew"

After Brandon had left Stef and Lena sat together on the edge of their bed trying to figure out a way of broaching the subject to Callie.

But they wouldn't be asking Callie anything that night, because they didn't know where she was going or what she was thinking of doing when she got there.

**So that's another chapter done, I pretty much have the next one finished, so just review and tell me when you want it **


	4. Chapter 4

**Well you wanted me to update, so I did, you see how it works :D**

**WITHOUT GIVING TOO MUCH AWAY, THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS MENTIONS OF VERY SERIOUS ISSUES. IF YOU THINK YOU ARE GOING TO BE AFFECTED BY IT, PLEASE DON'T READ.**

**I honestly feel bad for putting you guys through this…I'M SORRY!**

Callie took hold of the railings and pulled herself up onto the bridge. She looked down at the busy traffic below her. She wouldn't even survive the fall, and even if she did, the cars would most definitely take her life. She climbed over the railings, so she was stood on the very edge of the bridge. She stumbled slightly, grabbing hold of the railing, and re-gaining her balance. The tears were streaming down her face, so that the road below her turned into a blur of colours. She knew what she was doing would hurt Jude. She knew that he loved her. But she thought of the pain she had spent her life in. The pain that the people who had taken her in and were supposed to love her had inflicted on her. He might not be able to get to her now, but it still hurt, both physically and a different kind of pain that she felt in her heart. All she had to do was jump and fall. The hit would be nothing compared to what she'd already been through. She'd be dead almost instantly anyway. If she was lucky she'd barely feel a thing, and then she'd feel nothing at all.

Her first few fingers let go of the rails, until only two slipping fingers were holding her in place. She thought of her funeral. She could see her brother crying. She could see Brandon, and possibly the rest of the Fosters, but that was it. She would only be hurting a handful of people, and they would be able to move on. She couldn't move on from what he had done to her.

She tried to stop crying. Why was she doing this? She knew why, because death was better than living with the memories, and the fear that he would be able to hurt her again. She could join her mother, and finally not feel that constant hurt. But the thought that she was considering doing this still scared her. That her life had really been that bad. That she hadn't even thought to do this earlier.

Callie took a deep breath, looked once more at the traffic underneath her, and moved her first foot from the bridge. Tears still streaming down her cheeks.

Brandon was walking home along the long bridge after he left Aiden's house. The darkness was shielding him from what he was about to see. It wasn't until he was within a few feet could he make out the person standing on the edge of the bridge.

A few feet more and he could recognise the person.

"CALLIE" Brandon yelled, running forward.

Callie looked Brandon in the eyes, and then she turned away and jumped.

Brandon ran to the edge of the railings just in time to see her fall into a car and hit the ground. Her body bent in a way that he didn't think was even possible.

Slowly the cars stopped and people got out, surrounding the young girl. He could hear the sirens of an ambulance

And he just watched, tears falling down his face.

**So is Callie gonna be OK? I will have a new chapter soon, and I know this one was short but that's how I wanted it. Please review, I'll try not to make you wait too long.**


	5. Chapter 5

**So this story was planned before we learnt that Callie and Jude's mother died in a car crash, so just pretend you don't know that XD**

**Well this chapters pretty long, but if I cut it in half, it would have been too short.**

**Also I am not a Doctor, so please don't take any of the medical stuff I write too seriously.**

A brunette woman hurtled through the doors of the emergency room and ran towards the desk.

"Callie Jacobs?" she practically yelled at the receptionist. A blonde appeared behind her, looking just as stressed but trying not to show it.

"Lena, honey calm down"

The receptionist took her own sweet time typing Callie's name into the computer system. When she had finally pulled up the correct information she directed Stef and Lena down a corridor and through some doors, where they found Brandon waiting in a room filled with chairs.

Stef and Lena both exchanged hugs with their son and then sat down next to him.

"What actually happened?" asked Stef.

"I don't know I just saw her jumping from the bridge" said Brandon, shuddering at the image that kept replaying in his head on a loop.

"Is it because of this person you told us about from her past, do you know any more?"

Brandon sighed. He knew that he had to tell his moms. He could not let anything like this happen again, even if Callie did hate him for it.

So he told them. He told them everything Callie had told him about Liam, and when he was finished he finally looked into his mother's eyes. "I'm sorry. Believe me; I know now how stupid I was. I should have told you earlier, but I really didn't think this would happen"

Stef took in a deep breath. "I know, I know you're sorry. It's OK"

The three sat for a while longer. Not needing to talk, because there was nothing to say and they had too much on their minds.

After several minutes Brandon's voice cut through the silence that surrounded them. "Do the others know Callie's in here?" he asked.

"Jesus and Mariana know we're at the hospital but we didn't really want to tell them much more than that until we knew what was going on. Jude was asleep when we left" in reality they were trying to put off the moment when they had to tell their children, especially Jude, what was going on.

"Brandon, it's getting late, you should go home" Lena said gently.

"No" Brandon shook his head firmly. "Not until I know what's going on with Callie"

XXX

It was about midnight when the nurse came out and took a seat opposite Stef, Lena and Brandon.

She took a deep breath. It was her job to deliver bad news to patient's families, but somehow it never got easier.

"Callie has suffered a lot of injuries. Her left arm is broken in 3 places, along with a broken leg, collar bone and several ribs. She has a severe head wound and has lost a lot of blood, as well as severe bruising all over her body"

She watched as the three people before her took in the news.

"Is…is she going to survive?" asked Lena, quietly.

"We have her on a respirator, helping her to breathe. She is in a coma, and there is a possibility that she may not wake up. I'm sorry"

She looked at the three faces fall and tried to add something positive to the conversation.

"It's honestly a miracle that she survived at all. She's definitely a fighter. She got very lucky"

The young boy suddenly snapped into life "Lucky. You think she's been lucky? You have no idea what that girl has been through in her life. So much so that she tried to kill herself"

Brandon felt his mother's hand on his arm, and took a deep breath, trying to calm down. When he trusted himself to speak again, he looked up. "Can we see her?"

"Yes, follow me"

"Brandon" said Stef. "You can come and see Callie, but I want you home and in bed as soon as we're finished"

Brandon agreed, knowing he would be no use to anyone if he was tired.

Nothing could have prepared them for the sight they saw when they entered the hospital room. Callie had a large bandage around her head, to match the ones all over the rest of her body. There were indeed cuts and bruises littering her skin, with a huge bruise spreading round the left side of her face. Brandon could see stitches running all along her jaw line and IV lines and tubes running in and out of her body.

And honestly, Brandon didn't think he'd seen anything more beautiful in his life.

XXX

Brandon hadn't really thought about what he would return home to in the early hours of that morning. He probably assumed everyone would be asleep, given that it was almost 2 am.

Instead he found Jude in the living room crying and near the point of hysteria, and Mariana and Jesus looking helpless, after clearly trying everything in their power to calm the young boy down.

"Hey" said Brandon, dumping his things in the doorway and sitting down in the arm chair "what's going on?"

"What's wrong on with Callie? They said she's in the hospital. Is she OK?" Jude shouted. Brandon was taken aback by the level noise coming from the small child.

"You told him she was in the hospital?" Brandon looked over at the twins, trying to make himself heard over Jude's yelling.

"He woke up from a nightmare and wanted to know why Callie wasn't here. What were we meant to tell him?"

"Jude" Brandon took hold of the boys wrists, both to get him to look at his way and because Jude looked as if he was about to take his anger out on his surroundings. "Take a deep breath buddy, try to calm down. Then we can talk about Callie"

Jude spent a moment doing what he was told, then looked Brandon in the eyes. Unlike Callie, he had been able to trust this new family right from the beginning. "What's going on?" he asked in a small voice.

Brandon hated that he had to be the one to deliver this news. But it was clear to him that Jude was not going back to bed without some answers. And honestly, Brandon as too tired for an argument.

"Well, it's really hard telling you this, but your sister fell off the bridge by the highway"

Brandon watched Jude's face fall and more tears spill over his cheeks. "What was Callie doing on the bridge?"

Brandon looked shifty for a moment. He considered telling Jude the truth but he couldn't form the right words. Instead he just shrugged, to signal that he wasn't sure.

"Will she be OK?"

"Your sisters a fighter" said Brandon, repeating the nurse in the hospital "so let's hope so"

XXX

Jude was heading upstairs, the reality of what he'd been told hitting him hard. Callie had been his only family, the only person he'd had to love for so long. He still couldn't think of the Fosters as his true family. If anything happened to Callie he would have to face the world alone.

Right now the future looked like a dark, uncertain storm. The last thing he wanted to do was go back to bed. But he didn't want to be difficult, he wanted to be strong, Callie had always been strong enough for both of them, and now he had to be strong for her.

He paused at the bottom of the staircase to wipe the stray tears from his face, when he heard a conversation start up in the living room. He could tell they were talking about Callie. Well what else was there to talk about right now?

Jude knew better than to eavesdrop. But she was his sister and he knew there was something Brandon was keeping from him. He crept closer so that he was stood next to the door, just so that the others couldn't see him.

He still couldn't make out everything they were saying but he could pick up a few words. They were mostly things he already knew, so he went to leave when he heard one word. It was amazing the effect that three syllables could have on him. His stomach flipped over and he felt himself shiver, suddenly icy cold.

Suicide.

His sister had tried to kill herself.

And it was his fault. He obviously wasn't enough to live for any more. So many thoughts were chasing through his head, he needed to get out of the house. So he ran into the garden and fell to the ground, breathing heavily and just about resisting the urge to scream until his lungs felt like they had been ripped to shreds. He couldn't believe history was repeating itself.

Brandon, Jesus and Mariana could see this from the window, but decided to keep their distance. Brandon wondered if Jude knew that Liam was back, but decided to leave that piece of bad news for tomorrow.

XXX

It was about 5am when Jude finally got to sleep. But it wasn't at all peaceful. Sadly Jude was used to bad dreams haunting him at night time, but this wasn't a dream. It was a memory playing itself in his head while he slept, a memory from four years ago, yet he could still remember it more clearly than anything.

XXX

_The small living room in the apartment was lit only by one lamp in the corner, giving the room an eerie glow. There were two children, aged 12 and 8 on the couch. The eldest, Callie was just about slipping into a light sleep, and the youngest, Jude looked like he had been asleep for a while, his head resting in his sisters lap._

_This was the sight that greeted Officer Winters when she entered the apartment._

_Callie was awake immediately at the sudden noise, and jumped to her toes quickly. Jude was slower at waking up, but he sat up fully when he saw the police officer._

_Officer Winters didn't have time to introduce herself because Callie immediately started asking questions._

"_Where's our mom? Why isn't she home? She said she was going to the store hours ago where is she?" officer Winters could understand why the girl looked so worried. Even Jude was old enough to know that a police officer at your door was rarely a good thing, especially not when your mother had been missing for hours._

_She didn't answer the questions immediately, taking the time to introduce herself and sit down. When she asked Callie if she could speak to her alone, Callie put a defensive arm around her brother. "Whatever you have to say, he's staying"_

_Officer Winters took a deep breath, keeping her voice on a steady level "I'm sorry to inform you that your mother was found dead earlier this evening on the highway" she paused for a moment, letting what she had just said sink in._

_Any other child in Callie's situation would already be in a hysterical state. But Callie wasn't any other child. The only sign that she had processed what the officer had said were the tears barely running down her face and the stony expression she now wore. Jude on the other hand, was sobbing into his sister's chest. At eight years old he knew what death meant. He knew that his life would never be the same again. That he would grow up and live the rest of his years without his mother there. It felt like dark clouds were wrapping themselves around him, tight. Too tight._

_Officer Winters looked at the younger of the two, wondering for a moment if she should continue. Eventually she spoke again, knowing if she didn't tell them how their mother died, they would just ask anyway. "She jumped off the bridge, killing herself"_

_This got a reaction from Callie. Officer Winters watched as the girls face crumbled, only just keeping from falling apart completely. "So she wanted to die?" asked Callie, her voice hard._

"_Why would mom want to die?" Jude asked, swallowing back his tears._

"_Because she's sad. Because she misses dad" Callie spat out the name of the father who had left them only a couple of months ago. Callie knew this wasn't about her. It was about her mom, but it wasn't fair. It wasn't fair that Callie had to be strong right now, strong for her brother, and strong in front of the police officer who had just given her the news that had shattered her world. And another thought was playing in her head. Callie was so mad at her mom for leaving them, for putting them through the pain of losing her, for not even considering their feelings. And at that moment Callie hated herself more than anything because she knew she was a bad person for feeling that way._

"_Are we going to live with daddy?" asked Jude, a small amount of hope flickering in his tear filled eyes at the thought he may not have completely lost both parents._

"_I'm afraid we can't trace your father"_

_Callie was pulled out of her thoughts "well then what will happen to us?"_

"_We have an emergency foster home waiting for you"_

_Callie tried to put on a brave face, but it was so hard being the strong one. All she wanted to do was cry, but that privilege had been ripped away from her, in the same way her old life had. _

**Well that was that. Review and tell me what you think. I had a great response on the last one and I'm so grateful for that. I'll have the next chapter up as soon as I can, hopefully before the finale on Monday.** **We only have two more to go.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Well it's been a little while. I've been busy (that's a lie, I've just been re watching the finale over and over)**

**Well I didn't get many reviews on my last chapter, so some more would be nice XD**

**This is just a quick chapter focusing on life from everyone's POV after the effects of the last couple of chapters.**

Stef's POV

Between work, sleeping, the hospital and making sure that the fridge was stocked, I hadn't had time to actually sit down and contemplate what the outcome of Callie's accident may actually lead to. In many ways this was a good thing. Contemplating the outcomes meant thinking about the worst case scenario, and I didn't want to think about that. I just focused on the fact that Callie was a phenomenally strong young woman, both physically and mentally.

The worst thing was knowing that she had wanted to die.

Lena and I had tried so hard to make her feel safe and loved in our house. Because she was. And although the child now lying in the hospital bed wasn't my flesh and blood, it didn't make the pain in my heart any less than if that was the case. And it didn't make the hard lump of tears at the back of my throat whenever I swallowed any softer.

On top of worrying about Callie, I was worried about Lena. As it was school holidays she didn't need to be in work. This meant it was her unofficial job to be at the hospital 24/7. She hadn't been home for more than about an hour at a time, and only if I was able to stay with Callie. Although I didn't see her all the time I know she's not eating or sleeping. But right now she's in such a fragile state; I don't feel I can bring up the subject.

Lena's POV

I have barely left the chair next to Callie's bed. The thought of her finally coming round and waking up to find she was alone breaks my heart. That was the reason she tried to kill herself anyway, because she felt like she was alone while dealing with all the horrible things with Liam. I don't want her to ever feel as if she's alone again.

I know Stef's worried about me. She doesn't understand that it's not that I don't want to eat or sleep. It's that I can't. I can't stand over Callie's unconscious body with a plate of food, when she's suffering so much. She may never be able to eat again. It seems so selfish.

I would give anything to put myself in her place so she didn't have to suffer.

Jesus's POV

It's like there's a dark blanket wrapped around our family. But not in the warm comforting way, but in the way where it might just suffocate you if it gets any tighter. That's the only way to describe it. Everyone's tiptoeing around afraid that the blanket will get tighter, that Callie will get worse and they won't know what to do next.

Normally people look to me to be the comic relief. It's the role I play in this family. But right now I can't get into that character. Any attempt at humour is stretched tight, because for the first time in my life I don't feel like being funny, and sometimes I look at my family and wonder if they even remember how to laugh.

It's my job to keep the mood in the house high, and I've failed.

Mariana's POV

I'd spent the last few months wishing I could go back to having my own room. Well now I have that opportunity and I hate it. I hate falling asleep to complete quiet, instead of the sound of Callie's breathing. The silence is too loud, and its fills my bedroom, pressing down on my eardrums.

But the worst thing about having my own room again is the empty bed in the corner. Callie should be there now, writing in her journal or looking through pictures on instagram. But instead she's in a different bed, one that's wired up to machines that are trying to keep her from leaving us completely.

I look at that empty bed and I wonder if anyone will ever sleep in it again.

Brandon's POV

I can't close my eyes. Every time I do I see her body flying from the bridge and crashing into the cars below.

I could have stopped her.

If I hadn't spent those extra few minutes at Aiden's house because he wanted to show me some stupid video on YouTube, I could have caught her before she jumped.

I don't know what I would have said to her, but I would have convinced her to come down, that we'd talk it through with moms and she'd get the help she needed.

Or I could have just told moms about Liam ages ago, and they'd have sorted it out before it all got out of hand. Either way I am the reason she's currently fighting for her life. And when I remember that I sometimes feel like jumping off a bridge as well. Both for punishment, and to stop the constant feeling of guilt that presses down on my heart.

Jude

In the last couple of weeks I must have felt more emotions that I ever felt in my life. First I was angry. Angry at myself for not being good enough to live for. Angry at the hospitals and the ambulance for not getting there sooner, for not making her better immediately. And angry at Callie for putting me through this pain, when she knew how much loosing mom had hurt.

Then I was just sad. Sad because my sister had been so unhappy and had hated her life so much, and I hadn't noticed because I'd been too caught up in my own happiness while we were living in this house.

Then there was fear. I heard someone say once that fear of the unknown was the worst. I can understand now. The future looks blank, because I don't know if Callie will be there to watch me live the rest of my life or if I would have to go on without her. Would I be able to go on without her?

But the worst was the pain that came along with all these emotions. It wasn't the pain you get when you fall over or break your arm. It was different to anything I'd ever experienced. It was coming from inside of me.

**So guys, we only have one more chapter to go. As the next chapter will be the last I want it to be perfect, so I don't know when it will be up. Hopefully by the 18****th**** because I go on holiday after that.**

**Leave me a review.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Final chapter. Thank you to everyone who has been reviewing and reading, you're all amazing, and to those of you who said I made you cry, I'M SORRY, and bring tissues for this chapter.**

It had been a little under three weeks since Callie had first come into the hospital, and the family was doing the same thing they had done every day since then. Every afternoon Brandon would round everyone up in his car and drive them to the hospital, where they would all crowd into the little room and talk about everything they could think of, except for the main issue at hand. Pretending that it wasn't happening, even though the proof of it was lying in the bed at the heart of the room. This was the only time they had to spend together as a family these days.

XXX

Pain.

It suddenly hit her body like an electric shock, pulsing through every vain. She didn't want to open her eyes. The effort seemed far too much and she didn't want to face reality.

She tried to think of the last thing she remembered. It was like looking at a series of photographs, which got blurrier the further she looked. She remembered the loud traffic below her and the noise of the cars. She could feel the cold metal railings beneath her fingers. She remembered Brandon's face and then…Callie winced at the memory of falling to the ground that seemed so far away. It must have been quite noticeable because suddenly the background noise of people talking stopped and she heard Stef whispering her name to her left, and someone else, she guessed Lena, taking her right hand.

She hadn't expected them to be there. After all she wasn't their child, what did they care if she was in the hospital?

She inhaled deeply before finally opening her eyes. Everything seemed blurry and disorientated, but she could just make out that her brother, along with the rest of the Fosters were stood around, watching her. She could feel her heart beating a fast but steady beat in her chest.

And she hated it.

She hadn't jumped off a bridge so that she could live. She jumped off the bridge so that she could put an end to her pain. Well it hadn't ended. The pain was here and stronger than ever. It was overwhelming.

She wanted to be dead. She wanted it more than she had ever wanted anything. But once again things hadn't gone her way.

She was sobbing, kicking and screaming. Yelling at everyone for keeping her alive. "I want to die" she screamed over and over, before leaning back against the pillow, exhausted from everything. When she trusted herself to open her eyes again she did, focusing on the face of her little brother. He was looking at her in a way that shocked her to the core. She had seen him look at others like that before, the dark people in their past, but she had never seen that expression on his face when he was directing it at her. It was like he was scared of her.

He was right to look at her that way. She had been selfish. For putting him through the possibility of losing his only relative. And for putting Stef and Lena through the cost and inconvenience of having her staying in the hospital when in reality they didn't even have anything to do with her.

She took a deep breath, before whispering an apology into the now silent room. She looked Jude in the eyes, she wanted to tell him how much she loved him, how none of this was his fault, but she couldn't get the words out. She just hoped he could see it in her eyes. She opened out her arms and after a moment's hesitation Jude was on the bed next to her, his skinny arms wrapped tightly around her, realising now just how close he came to losing his sister forever. Callie let him cry onto her shoulder and hug her, although it was doing nothing for the injuries littering her body. She kissed his head and whispered comforting words into his ear. As she rocked her younger brother in her arms, Callie took a moment to look around at everyone else in the room. She took in the tears silently making their way down Stef and Lena's faces. They were looking back at her. There was something in their eyes that Callie hadn't seen in a long time, not since their mother had died. Love.

Callie couldn't work out whether it was that that was making her cry, or whether it had just been an exhausting couple of minutes. She swallowed back the sobs now forming in the back of her throat before moving so Jude could look her in the eyes. She knew she had the attention of everyone in the room. "I'm going to get better" she said.

"Do you promise?"

She took a deep breath "it's going to be hard, but I will make sure I don't do something like this again" She knew she couldn't put them through any of that again.

Stef smiled "well I'm glad to hear that, because we are going to get you the help you need, and we are going to be with you every step of the way"

XXX

When Brandon had taken Jude and the twin's home, Stef and Lena sat themselves down in the two now vacant chairs next to Callie's bed.

Callie started to apologise again but Stef cut her off. "Don't. You don't need to. None of this is your fault"

Callie could see the sincerity behind the older women's eyes, so she just nodded in response.

"But I want you to know you can tell us anything, we don't ever want you going through something as horrible as everything with Liam on your own. No one deserves that"

Callie flinched at the mention of Liam's name. "How did you-"

"-Brandon told us" Lena cut in. "You don't have to worry, Stef's making sure that that's all being taken care of"

Callie nodded again, for once feeling like she could completely trust someone other than Jude.

"Is there anything you want to say?" asked Stef.

Callie knew she was talking about Liam, but there was one thing she really needed to get off her chest. "Yes. Thank you for not giving up on me. If this had happened at any of my other homes…" she trailed off.

"Sweetheart" said Stef "we would never give up on you."

**Well there we go. This was completely different to what I planned, but I still think it's OK, although it's quite short. Leave me a review and let me know what you think. I know a lot of you wanted Brallie to happen but I said from the start that that would only be an underlying theme.**

**And finally-after uploading the last chapter which had parts in everyone's POV, I realised that for whatever reason I love writing in the character of Jesus. So I really want to write a story focused on his character, so this is where you guys can leave me a review with some suggestions for my next story **


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